Freedom of Fate
by CrazyPandaHat05
Summary: American sweetheart Crystal had always remained in the shadows of society. This is until her family got the opportunity to transfer to Japan. With the help of Makoto, she is able to form new friendships and perhaps a relationship with a special someone.
1. Chapter 1

Crystal has always been a shy individual. Ever since a young age, she hadn't had much opportunities to socialise with others, to make friends. This was from the fact that she had been home schooled all her life.  
However, there was one individual that always cheered her right up, even if they were far apart.

" _Honey, have you finished packing?"_ Called out a feminine voice from downstairs.

The voice caught the green haired girl's attention, her bright blue eyes looking up from a stack of neatly packed clothing in a travel case to the closed door of her bedroom.  
"Yes, mom!" She called out to the voice that belonged to her mother, although from the mess that her room was currently in with the odd piece of material here and there lying about her floor. It certainly was going to be a long night. With getting through another year with constant high grades according to her tutor on the exams, she didn't have much time to lay back and relax. After all, her mother had just got transferred temporarily to a new job in Japan at the last minute so she had no choice but to spend the last few days to get everything packed away for the time that they will be away.  
A sigh escaped her lips as her fingers trailed around the zip lining of the suit case. Eventually her fingertips made contact with the zip, pulling it towards her and around until the case was closed securely. The quiet serenity of the room was interrupted by an alarm on her computer that sat on the desk in the corner of the room. Through the glass lenses that settled on Crystal's nose ridge, she peered over to the screen to see it was a video chat invite by that one certain individual. Of course, she hadn't spoken to him for some time, or at least ever since the summer began when her mother got the news.

Rapidly, she sat down onto the spinning chair and moved her hand over the mouse, clicking the accept button which brought up a friendly yet familiar face.  
"Morning! Or should I say afternoon?" Said the brunette in Japanese with a rather confused tone and look which resulted in him tilting his head slightly to the side as well as a small laugh that escaped the female's lips. Luckily enough, ever since making first contact with him, she decided to spend any spare time she had after her studies to learn the language so that they could communicate with each other when they got the chance to finally meet in person.

"Morning, Makoto." She responded with a beaming smile.

"I can't wait to finally meet you tomorrow. Hopefully we will get the chance to hang out. I also told my friends who want to meet you too." Makoto stated with enthusiasm, his emerald eyes glowing with anticipation. Not only did he have very few female friends, but he has never seen anyone from a different country.

"Of course! I'll meet you at your school sometime in the afternoon when we get everything sorted out." She explained the plan that she had thought through, to which Makoto nodded in agreement.

Now, you all may be wondering how the two of them met. Actually it was quite simple. Makoto needed help with his English and since his friends was also busy with their own lives, he decided to join a forum online, to which he came into contact with Crystal who gladly took the time she had to help him with his secondary language. Soon enough, their friendship bloomed and they began to talk more and more as the time went on as well as allowing the two to learn another language.

The two talked for about an hour, despite that it didn't felt that long. The conversation drove on from what they have been up to over the past week to their personal lives. However, their final meetup online came to an end by just the sound of the door unlocking. The door opened just the slightest, enough for a brown long haired woman to look into the room.

Crystal's head looked over to make eye contact with her mother.

"Are you…" She began, pausing abruptly upon noticing the mess that the room was still in. The glow that was contained in her golden eyes faded slightly, her smile fading for a split second before returning into the form of a caring, yet strict expression.  
"We're about to leave." The brunette stated to which Crystal responded at first with a small nod.

"Okay, mother…"

With so, the head disappeared from the door, leaving the green haired girl alone with Makoto still clear on the screen. A sigh escaped her lips as she turned around to the screen, staring up to the glass screen that brought together the two teenagers.

"I need to go… I need to clean up my room before we leave to catch our flight. But the next time we speak, it will be in person."

Of course, Makoto was the type to understand that she had to leave and besides within a few hours, he would be able to see her for the first time, which was surely enough to make him ecstatic.  
"Take care." He simply stated before logging off, leaving Crystal with a bashful smile to brighten up her expression. She honestly couldn't believe it. She was finally able to meet her first best friend, the one person besides her mother that she knew she could trust as well as be confident around.

Placing her hands on the armrests and pulling herself off her chair, she quickly got all of her belongings that was laying around on her floor and bed in its rightful place before taking hold her luggage. Sure with her small frail form, the case and bags were rather heavy. In fact, with carrying everything at once, she stumbled a little by how unbalanced she was with the weight on her back but somehow, without tripping down the stairs, she got down and out the door to place the baggage into the car.

A small sigh escaped from the relief of pressure that was inflicted on her back, her neck tilting upwards to view the clear blue sky, the sunshine reflecting off of her glasses.

"Just a few more hours…"


	2. Chapter 2

" _We will be landing in Tokyo, Japan in approximately five minutes. Please wait until the plane lands before proceeding to move."_

Those words rang in Crystal's ears, her resting body limp in the seat as she began to stir from the period of time that she remained in a peaceful slumber. Her darkened vision returned into a haze of blurred colors and shapes, a mumble of confusion proceeding whilst she attempted to bring herself back to reality before they leave to their ride to their new home in Iwatobi.

The motherly figure who was settled down in the seat beside her looked over to her daughter, a smile of amusement to see Crystal in such a state from just waking up. Her green hair was going in every direction and jumbled into a mess as well as her glasses which were slanted to the side, making it all the more difficult to see.  
"Have a nice sleep?" She asked, to which the girl nodded in silence whilst rubbing the rheum out of her aqua blue eyes.

The female used the short amount of time that she had to mentally prepare herself. All for the new sights, sounds and smells that may seem so alien towards the American. After all, despite the unique similarities here and there, the two countries were very different. Even the moment that they left the plane, service was almost immediate. Despite having to struggle through the large crowd, they got to their vehicle that was booked in advance to take them to the other city in record time. Everything seemed to be one surprise after the other.

The two exited the station to be welcomed by a black taxi cab which was parked by the kerbside. Since the Record Label had asked them personally for the transfer, they had already paid for the majority of the expenses on travelling there. Entering the vehicle, a middle aged man was seen in the driver's seat, a pair of hazel brown eyes gazing back at the two.

"So, what is your destination?" Asked the man in his native tongue.

Because of the fact that Crystal had prepared months before, she quickly understood and gave their destination point. As well as this, her mother only had just begun to learn the basics so it was useful to have her daughter around as the translator.

The inside of the vehicle returned to an awkward silence, the girls bright blue eyes scanning outside the pane of clear glass the separated her and the beauty of the outside world. The nature of it all intrigued the being, almost to the point that she never wanted it to end.

Clearing her throat, the older brunette that sat beside her looked over to her right, a calm smile yet still plastered across her lips.  
"So… Are you excited to finally meet your friend?" She asked which grabbed Crystal's attention.  
Hesitantly, Crystal nodded whilst the faintest of smiles appeared, her head lowered down to her small frail hands. "Yeah… Although more nervous than anything."

Of course, her mother took the opportunity to embarrass her only child by stating a teasing comment.  
"Oh? Are you sure you two aren't seeing each other?" She asked, her pitch moving slightly to emphasise that certain moment of teasing.  
The girl's cheeks turned bright red almost immediately. Because of the fact that she was an introvert, she hadn't taken into consideration what would happen if there was a guy she really likes that liked her back. Just the thought made her body stiffen.

Her mother laughed in response before pulling Crystal close to calm her down, just like any parent figure would do. "It's okay, I'm only just kidding. You can take all the time you need before you are ready to begin dating."

The rest of the journey was quite uneventful to say the least. With the exception of having small talk with the driver, not much else happened. When they arrived at Iwatobi, the place seemed rather quiet but at the same time welcoming. This was perfect for Crystal. She could see why Makoto enjoyed living there.

Soon enough the two arrived at their new home and was quickly settled in but it seemed that during their time in their new home, time flew by whilst they sorted out their things. As soon as Crystal was near done, she seen the time. It was early in the afternoon, the time that she promised that she would meet the green eyed orca during their time on video chat.  
Swiftly, she slipped on a pair of trainers and shouted out for her mother to hear.  
"I'm going to go meet up with Makoto and explore the town."

Before leaving, she waited for the reply to which was. " _Okay, but be sure to be back by dinner._ "

"Okay mom!" She responded, however before taking another step out of the door, she also heard her mom call out one last time for the time being.  
" _And make sure that you don't get lost."_ The voice simply stated, to which made Crystal smile out of how ridiculous it was.

"I won't."

Immediately, she went and hopped down the steps and down the street when it occurred to her; she didn't know where the school was. Shaking her head to calm herself down before she began to panic, she told herself that it was a small town. Perhaps it's nearby somewhere. However, as she quickly realised, she was lost. As intelligent as she was, she had a rubbish sense of direction.

As she took her phone out to check out a map of the town, she found herself bumping arms with someone, although it was unknown who as she wasn't paying attention until then.

"S-Sorry!" She apologized in English at first before saying it again in Japanese whilst bowing.

Crystal raised her head, only to see that it was two boys around the same age as her. One had semi-long maroon hair and red eyes whilst the other boy beside him had short black hair and a beautiful set of teal eyes that were quite similar to hers.

"It's fine. Although, are you new around here? I haven't seen you around here before. I'm Rin and this is my friend and swimming partner, Sousuke" Rin said as well as getting a silent wave from Sousuke. He spoke in English much to Crystal's relief. After all, she was not expecting to find someone who spoke her own native tongue right off the bat.

"I'm Crystal." She replied, giving that sort of smile that indicated that she was nervous, but at the same time, happy that she was able to gain the experience of speaking to another teenager face to face. After all, all the visions that popped up into her mind were often her either running away or having an interior mental breakdown.  
"A-And yeah, I just moved here from America… U-Umm, I don't want to be a bother or anything, but do you happen to know the way to Iwatobi High School?" She asked, the thought provoking her mind that she was going to meet with her online friend for the first time.

"Well you are walking the wrong way…" He stated whilst giving a light chuckle and grinning, revealing his set of sparkling white, shark-like teeth.  
"But we will bring you there."

"T-Thank you…"

The three walked together then, a conversation beginning that never seemed to end. Crystal had so many questions as well as the fact that Sousuke was quite curious about her intentions of going to Iwatobi. She explained everything between talking with Makoto as well as her mother getting the opportunity to work in a professional music recording studio in the neighbouring city. Moving to Iwatobi was merely to get the peace, she also added.

"I see. So tell me, is there something going on between you and Makoto? I mean, he hasn't mentioned you or anything." Rin asked with a smirk, causing the females cheeks to turn bright red in response, much to which brought even more amusement to the maroon haired swimmer.  
"I-I'm not! I swear, we are only just friends!" She yelped out quickly, hoping at the least that he won't spread any false rumours to his friends.

Sousuke rested his hand on her green hair, messing it up a little whilst giving a monotone smile as if to say that he meant no harm because of their height differences.  
"He's only pulling your leg…" He stated, his voice rather quiet, just enough for the two of them to hear.

All the girl could do was nod with a soft grunt, almost as if she was still calming herself down from the joke that seemed to be a running gag with her. It wasn't as if she didn't want a relationship, she was just afraid to be hurt, to be heartbroken like her mother after her father left them. The dark day of losing all faith in herself.

* * *

"We're here!" Called out Rin as they approached a clean white building that looked quite modern. Behind, was the swimming pool for those that was training for the swimming tournament every year. As far as Crystal could hear from the sound of water splashing, there was people using it. Makoto hadn't mentioned about anybody with the exception of four other names that she only vaguely remembered.

With reaching the gate, Crystal was pushed in lightly first by Rin, catching unwanted attention by a tall and slim blue haired male. It took a moment of silence and a pause of reality before the male rushed over to her, to the point that it was in her personal space.

"Such beauty!" He clearly called out, catching the attention of the other four swimmers.

The nerves were certainly getting to the poor girl who wasn't used as to getting so much attention, her instincts forcing her to back up, eyes widened whilst tears almost welding up in them. She couldn't help it. An aching feeling began to grow in her chest and her throat, almost as if it was near impossible to speak. Even all the noises around her began to turn into a muttered mess.

" _Crystal?_ " Spoke out a familiar voice which broke out of the fading noise.

Her eyes darted over to the voice, only to make contact with the green eyed orca that she was intending on meeting up with.

"Makoto!" She replied gleefully, the two speed walking up to each other, the girl's body lifted into a hug.

The three males that had only just met her just simply stared at the two, however a raven blue eyed male wasn't as curious as the other two who studied their friend with this mysterious green haired girl.

"Ehh, you didn't mention that you had a girlfriend, Mako-Chan." Said a short blond male, who went by the name of Nagisa Hazuki.

The hugging pair split up immediately after hearing so, a faded tint of pink crossing the Orca's face.

"You are mistaken. She is just a friend of mine that just moved here. Her name is Crystal and all I ask of you is that you don't overwhelm her. She's not used to crowds…"

Nagisa nodded almost immediately with a brightened smile, his childish yet friendly personality showing, almost as if that is his way of welcoming the new comer.  
"I'm Nagisa and that one who just scared you is Rei." He said, pointing behind him towards the boy whose mouth was hanging.  
He couldn't believe that he was saying something like.

"I-I wasn't trying to scare you…" Rei began to say in protest, however his voice out of the sudden began to lower halfway through his comment, a dark shadow over drafting his face.

He screwed it up…  
Or so he thought…

A smile rose on Crystal's face as she waved it off.  
"I-It's okay, Rei. I know that you didn't mean to do so." She stated as a way of trying to bring his self-esteem back up. And it worked.

"And that's Haruka over there." Nagisa interrupted, pointing over to the dark hair male who was still soaked from practicing free style.  
Haruka just nodded towards her with an emotionless expression before leaping back into the water, not in any way interested in communicating with the new comer.

"Don't worry, he's usually like that." Makoto whispered whilst leaning down to her height since there was a good number of inches between the two.  
Crystal bobbed her head, the faint smile that had eased on her face previously remained there. For some reason, despite just meeting the swimming team, she felt that that was the start of something big.

Something magical…


	3. Chapter 3

Even within the short span of time that Crystal had been in Japan, she had decided that her presumed thoughts were in fact true. The girl quickly grew close to Iwatobi's swimming team, as well as Gou. After all, it was always nice to have a girl around for advice.  
For the weekend that they had free to do whatever they wished, all of them hanged out together, shopping for essentials that the green haired female needed considering how she was persuaded into enrolling into the local high school, even if she was a late comer. Everything had seemed to be going well when it came to getting books, pens and pencils as such, until Haruka spotted something in the corner of his eye, something that no one else took notice of until a moment too late.

"Hmm, where's Haru-Chan?" Asked Nagisa as he was the first to realise the male that escaped from the group had been quiet, more than he usually is.

Makoto looked around for the blue eyed dolphin, his own eyes widening in panic as to what he was witnessing.  
Haruka had spaced out, almost like someone who was going through love at first sight. Quite ironically, this was most likely the case. The swimmer began to strip down into his swimsuit, to which Crystal turned bright red from embarrassment. Why would he do something like that in public? But something kept her eyes on his moving body, every toned muscle stretching and revealing itself under the male's peachy skin. She couldn't take her eyes off of him.  
Just as Haruka dipped his toes in the cold water of the aquarium, Makoto rushed over to him and pulled him away from the tank before he could sink into the fish infected water. Of course, Haruka didn't say anything. He just simply just stared mindlessly at his target. That was until a short, chubby man walked up to him, his eyebrows furrowed in anger on what had just happened. On the belief that they were going to get into trouble, they thought correctly. Each and every one of them was taken into the main office for a lecturing and punishment that was sure not to end well.

* * *

Eventually, the group left the store, their heads hanged in shame whilst an over drafting shadow crept over the top of their faces.  
"I can't believe that we just got banned…" Muttered Crystal in disbelief, her head shaking from side to side slowly.

"At least it's not permanently and none of our parents don't need to know about this…" Stated Makoto, attempting to see the good side to it all but in reality, what much else could be said about the situation, to which everyone nodded in agreement.  
"I guess, but still, we probably won't remember this anytime soon. Besides, you're transferring to Iwatobi High School, right?" Stated Rin whilst he pulled his hair away from his face, her sharp eyes peering over to the innocent girl.

"Right! I start tomorrow so I'm making sure that I am fully prepared."

"Yay! We have a new member in our group!" Exclaimed Nagisa happily, jumping on the girl's back without even realising that her form wasn't able to take much weight. It certainly didn't help that Nagisa weighed a little more than her. Because of this, Crystal, out of surprise, fell face first onto the solid ground with the male squishing her down.  
"S-Sorry!" Yelled out Nagisa in a panic before he carefully pulled himself off of Crystal, allowing Rei to help her up. However, something happened at that moment.

There was a split second that the two made eye contact. Rei's hands began to grow sweaty. Before his mouth could pitch out any words, he let go of her hands.

"I have to head home now… But I will see you guys tomorrow at school." She responded before giving Rei a quick glance. He simply smiled and nodded.

"Take care…" Rei said whilst waving good bye to the girl as she left down the street, allowing her to sort out her thoughts. She couldn't explain what had happened just then. A feeling began to grow within her that made her heart pound heart in her chest. Was this love?

"No…" Thought Crystal. "That can't be it…"  
After that, she decided to let go of what she had experienced. After all, despite having a new life, she was still generally the same person. She had to put her education and well-being before a guy that she liked. Although, she wouldn't be able to predict that the two will meet again sooner than expected.

* * *

Morning soon fell upon the city of Japan, the late hours that was used for either sleeping or scavenging around in the city lights, but then again, it seemed that time had flew by in a flash the more that the teen's mind became more relaxed and at peace. Perhaps it flew by too fast. A blue gaze flashed in the room, a haze of white blinding her vision for a moment before she turned her head to view the ticking hands of the clock. Just noticing the time, she realized that she slept in. Her previously tired eyes snapped open wide awake, as if she had indulged a large amount of caffeine without a second to spare. Whilst her body bounced out the bed. Because of the fact that she had slept in, she had no choice but to make what she had without having a shower. Quickly putting on her new school uniform which was something that she would have to get used to considering how she rarely wore a skirt back in America, let alone a school uniform. A flash of green rushed out of the room and to where the kitchen was. Looking around, there was no other life to be seen but a bright pink piece of paper with a small key laid beside a brown paper bag that stood on the table. It seemed that her mother was already out on business. Just the usual mornings. Seems like nothing about that was going to change…

But she couldn't worry about that now. She placed the food filled bag into her open backpack before closing it and leaving the house to head to school. However, despite getting to school just in time with running the majority of the way, she was going to be faced with a surprise.

Rei had already been in the classroom before hand with Nagisa. They had been both having a conversation but to Rei, it seemed rather frustrating. After all, their intellectual levels were quite varied.  
"I told you Nagisa, al-"Before he could continue with his sentence, he heard the sound of heavy panting. His head turned to where the entrance was, to see the female that he became rather acquainted with, hunched over and forcing herself to catch her breath quickly.

"G-Good, class hasn't started…" She muttered to herself as she raised her head, her big blue eyes making immediate contact with Rei, who was blankly staring at her up and down. Every other noise for the two became nothing but a distant murmur that they couldn't hear anymore, their bodies frozen on the spot as they stared across the room. The dreaded silence had shattered the moment that dots of red dropped on the floor beside Rei's desk.

Rei began to get a nose bleed.

In a panic, he held his hand over the blood stained area just above his upper lip before turning away. He grabbed a tissue before wiping it all away, hoping that nobody had noticed this suspicious behaviour. As much as Crystal wanted to see if he was okay after noticing his frantic actions, she decided not to. She couldn't explain why but she felt an urge to keep away, almost as if she was scared of the truth of how she felt for him. Not now… She needed more time.

Just as she waited for everyone to arrive, she chose one of the spare seats as the subtle chime of the school bell was set off. Class was in session.  
A middle aged man walked into the classroom. He seemed to be rather laid back by his appearance, however at the same time, something about how he motioned to the desk at the front, his eyes peering across the class of students that awaited intently to learn, it had a strict demeanour to it.

Just as the teacher began to take the register, he noticed a strange, unfamiliar name on the list.

"A new student? Could you please stand up, Miss Blade?" Asked Wakahisa, his naturally narrowed eyes making immediate contact to the girl who stood up rather hesitantly. Just by the amount of the attention that she gained because of one simple gesture made her body stiffen, her head forced to stay out of her shoulders.  
A subtle smile of comfort rose on his lips as began to speak once again.  
"Welcome to Iwatobi. I am Mr Wakahisa and I will be your registration and literature teacher. I will hope to see good things from you…" He stated before allowing her to sit back down again. Ever since then, classes had continued as usual and as Rei had noticed, the girl who he had set his eyes on was more than just looks, but she was smart too. She was perfect…

Quickly, he devised a plan on how to spend some time alone with her without seeming creepy, or even doing anything that will destroy what self-esteem he had left. (After all, we all know how bad he was at swimming when he first joined.)

Classes had passed and as well as doing his studies, he pondered on ideas until it hit him…


	4. Chapter 4

Rei quickly packed his belongings the moment that the school bell rang, indicating that it was the end of the day. He had been anticipating this moment, producing multiple scenarios in his head as to what he should say. Every single one however, was sure to end in rejection if he wasn't careful enough. His time was up, he would just have to wing it.

Before Crystal left the classroom, Rei called her name, which he succeeded in grabbing her attention. But by that moment that he witnessed her big and loving blue eyes, his mind immediately went blank. He stood there, sweat dripping from his forehead and his mouth gaping open.

"Are you okay?" Crystal asked as she took a few steps towards him to feel his forehead. "Maybe you should go see the nurse…" She added.  
It took mere moments for Rei to react. Upon seeing the girl's worried expression, he had to do something. At that moment, he reacted.

"I-I'm fine…" He nervously started as he backed away a little for space. "I need a tutor for Music. Please teach me!" He finally said, bowing his head out of politeness.  
As much as Crystal found it rather flattering and something she didn't find necessary, it was a custom that her new found friends were used to. In her perspective, it was strange but soon enough, she would get used to it.

"Sure! I'll message my mom to say that I will be late home tonight… But speaking of tutoring, could you help me with Literature? There are still some things that I don't understand about the piece we were given…"

Just hearing that she accepted his request was enough to have him over the moon with joy, but the fact that she was asking for his help just made things even better. Despite being intelligent, she still had flaws. She couldn't be more perfect for him.  
"Of course!" He replied enthusiastically whilst pushing up his glasses. "I promise you that I will do my best to help you pass. In fact, it's guaranteed with my help." He gloated. But deep inside, he knew that it was to impress the girl standing in front of him, although it was probably not the best move.

"A-Anyway, let's get going!" He quickly said in order to change the subject.

The two then proceeded to walk back to Rei's home to study for the evening. They both spent the train journey talking about different topics but it was mainly Rei asking about her life back in America. As much as she had thought of so many other topics that were more interested, it seemed rather nice that a guy was so interested in her, especially considering how they were both 'nerds' to the world.

The eventually got back to his house whilst it was still day break, both had been laughing about something but by the time they opened the door, they attracted the attention of another male inside who was just about to leave.  
He looked extremely similar to Rei, with the exception of longer hair and he didn't have glasses. He was taller too.

"Good to see you little bro. I see that you have found a girlfriend now." He said with a teasing sneer.

Crystal's face gradually heated up as Renjiro continued to speak. It was like déjà vu as she had heard the same tease over and over again from her mother but despite this, it was safe to assume that Rei had it far worse. A raw nerve was struck in the younger brother of the two, his cheeks glowing apple red from being so worked up about the two's relationship status.

"S-She's just a friend of mines!" He stuttered out in a way that was almost pleading, to which brought a chuckle to escape from the older male's lips.

"Whatever you say… I'll be home soon…" He said as he walked by the two and out the door and soon enough out of sight.

The room returned to silence as soon as the sound of a running motor disappeared. Rei and Crystal exchanged glances.  
"We will forget that ever happened…" Said Rei, to which Crystal nodded almost immediately after. Upon coming to the mutual agreement, they got their heads down and began their study session. Rei had helped her with the Japanese Literature, or at least with some of the words that were quite long or too complex that she hadn't learnt through her conversation with Makoto whilst Crystal helped him with his music homework.  
If she had to be brutally honest, she found it quite cute at how confused he looked. Even with explaining everything step by step, it only seemed to puzzle him more. She simply got lucky that she had learnt the basic knowledge personally from her mother.

But soon enough, all of the studying had brought an aching feeling in their stomachs…

Rei had decided since it was probably too late to cook for the two of them, it would be quicker ordering takeout, which he did. Most of the food items he had mentioned was somewhat familiar to her although she was completely oblivious to some. Either way, she was still up for trying new things.

It eventually came.

Rei hauled in an average size box into the kitchen which was filled with several containers and with setting each food product on the kitchen table, they took a little of everything began to tuck in.  
It had been a first time that Crystal was using chopsticks and it was going all well until she tried to pick up what it appeared to be sticky rice. Every attempt had always ended up with the rice splitting apart and falling back into the bowl.

But Rei knew what was wrong…

He hesitantly stood up and walked over to the girl, his form sitting behind hers as he gently grabbed the girl's hands, causing an immediate flustered reaction to grow on her face. Was it really obvious that she was having trouble, she thought to herself as Rei took the chopsticks and instinctively began to feed her the rice. Even if she was able to eat the flavorous delicacies, she could feel the male's back against hers, his heart beat heavy and fast for some odd reason. It wasn't as if he was flirting. Perhaps the truth would soon come into light.

Despite the slightly heated moment during dinner, everything else went back to normal. The dishes were cleaned soon after and the two returned back to their study session for the rest of the evening. It all was going rather well until everything went unusually quiet in Rei's perspective.

"Hey, do you nee-…" Firstly asked Rei to the girl sitting beside him, however upon turning his head in the direction to where she was sitting, his question stopped midway to the sight. She had drifted off to sleep whilst in an attempt of staying up to focus on their school work.  
Rei picked up his phone which sat on top on his own set of textbooks. He checked the time on the brightly illuminated screen.  
"I guess we didn't realise how late it was…" He muttered to himself, a smile easing across his face to how bizarre the moment seemed. Taking his eyes off of the screen and to the sleeping maiden, he had decided that it was probably best to let her sleep around for the night instead of waking her up and sending her home. With a quick phone call to her mother, surely it was to be alright. Although, it would mean that he would have to use her own phone, something that he was hesitant about.

Leaning over, he took a grab of her phone and without invading her privacy through the form of messages, she found the contact named 'Mom' and dialled up the linked number. So far so good…  
The phone clicked but before Rei could get a word in, all he could hear was the deafening complaints by the woman on the other end. He even had to pull away the phone from his ear from how loud she seemed. Although, this was normal considering how her mother was just worried, as any parental figure would. Midway in the constant rambling that otherwise, would probably go on all night, he interrupted her with using broken English and explained the situation, which eventually led to receiving the permission he needed to allow her daughter to stay over for the night.

Finally…

With giving his final farewells, the two ended the conversation, to which he laid back on the cough, a sigh escaping lightly enough for it to be barely audible. With such a first impression, it was certainly going to be eventful when the two meet once again. But now, all the technicalities were out of the way.

Rei picked himself up off the couch, stretching his long and powerful legs whilst his sneaky eyes peered around the room until he found what he wanted. He grabbed a thin but cosy blanket that was set nearby in the room and set it on top of Crystal's body, merely to keep her warm overnight. However, with looking at her face alone that seemed so peaceful, he took in the fact that her glasses were slanted on her face from the position that she set herself on. He kneeled down and placed his thumb and forefingers on the frames of her own glasses and slid them off carefully so that it didn't wake up her up before setting them aside on the table, where they were easy to spot and to reach them.

"Good night, Crystal…" Rei whispered tenderly before placing a soft kiss on her forehead, grabbing the rim of the blanket and tucking in her form before going to bed himself for the night.


	5. Chapter 5

"H-Hey! Slow down!" A feminine voice behind Rei yelled out in a panicked motion. The male kept a firm grip of her hand in order for her keep up with him, primarily because he was quite athletic with previously being on the track team at Iwatobi High as well as continuing on with the swim team. However, Crystal was the complete opposite. She had no physical attributes to show off. It was more of the case that she was all brains.

"But we will be late for class if we slow down!" Rei responded after giving a short pause of words to rearrange his thoughts on the girl's statement. It had been nothing but a rush the moment that they woke up. With sleeping in later than usual to the train ride taking a longer than expected, they were short on time that they couldn't dwell upon.  
However, with speed and precision, they managed to make it to class before the bell chimed, indicating that it was time to start a new day of learning. Although it was only the second day that Crystal was part of the entirely new lifestyle, her existence had been taken on a rollercoaster ride that she hadn't expected at all but this was only just the beginning.

After proceeding a daring race against time to arrive punctually, the rest of the day had gone by as planned. Nothing but going from one subject to the other, reviewing over the content that needed to be learnt. The flicking of the pages every now and then, the smell of chalk particles drifting through the air whilst the teacher wrote on the blackboard, even the sights of all the students working hard for the near future. It was just a usual and normal school day, even with being in another country.  
Soon came lunchtime. Everyone inside of the classrooms scattered the moment that they were dismissed, all except Rei and Crystal, who was still trying to write down notes. Especially with being naturally English, it took her a little longer to comprehend the language.

"Hey, were all meeting on the rooftop? Want to come along?" The blue haired male asked to his fellow companion whilst looking over at her with the corner of his eye as he passed by her desk. He had his phone in his hand so it was clear that he had just gotten the message. Or more so, it could have been sent in their moment of panic.

Crystal nodded as she finally finished off the last of her notes, her glance moving from her books that she packed away back to him. "Sure. But what about grabbing a bite to eat first?" She asked, knowing well that he had swimming practice after school. After all, it probably wasn't the best feeling doing a physical activity on an empty stomach.

Rei simply gave a smile and pulled out two bento boxes that he, himself had prepared that same morning, whilst producing a pose that was rather graceful, but at the same time, humorously humiliating.  
"No need to worry, my beautiful butterfly, I have prepared our lunches." He simply said, to which Crystal gratefully took one of the neatly wrapped food packages, her smile quickly turning.

"And please, don't call me that. If anyone around hears that then they will probably think that we were dating…"

"R-Right…" Muttered Rei, the fact that he was unable to say anything else meant that he had been rejected by who he assumed to be his 'Study Buddy'.

With everything sorted and all discussions coming to an end, the two left together and headed over to the rooftop.

Upon reaching the open space on top of the building, the two had found almost immediately the three swimmers settled down with their own meals, and of course, Gou who was lecturing them about their food choices being unsuitable for their physical needs in terms of training. The atmosphere was lively and quite comical especially.

However, their attention got grabbed and the lecturing came to a halt for the time being.

"Hey guys!" Yelled Nagisa cheerfully as he waved over the two, but something seemed off…  
Everyone just simply stared at them whilst they both sat down in the circle and began to indulge in their food. Aside from Haru, who's expression remained as its usual, they all had a mischievous look on their faces, as if they knew something that they didn't. If she had to put what she felt at that moment, it was unnerving and tensed.

"So…" Makoto said, in order to break the silence. It was rather obvious that from his hand reaching over to rub the back of his neck that he felt rather uncomfortable with the plan, mostly because it seemed like they were intruding.  
"Are you two dating?" Haru asked almost immediately after with a monotone voice, his expression not even changing in the slightest as if he wasn't interested in their love life.

But because of the presumption, it was safe to say that it certainly brought a reaction. Rei's hand stopped to a halt before he could place the piece of food within his mouth but Crystal wasn't so lucky. Because of the shock just after swallowing, small pieces of crushed up rice got stuck within her throat, causing her to cough it all up in order to clear her pipes.

"W-What!?"

Crystal and Rei's faces were blazing red, to the point that there could have been steam coming off from them, especially from how flustered they were.

"I saw you two holding hands this morning!" Nagisa responded rather cheerfully. "It was so cute!"

Before the two could protest that they didn't do such a thing, they froze up for a moment with their mouths gaping, their heads slowly moving to look at one and the other. It was true that they did hold hands, but only they knew the precise reason as to why.  
Rei began to explain the situation to his friends and that it was only a matter that they were running a little late, to which eventually led to Nagisa's disappointment.

"Aww!" He whined in a playful way, a pout finishing off the disappointed expression. "But you two should totally date! You would be so cute together!"

A nervous yet short laugh escaped the girl's lips by his comment although the tension once again grew between them all. Why did they have to bring up something like that? Even if the two of them were dating, they wouldn't hide it, despite having to go through the torture of being constantly teased.

Gou had decided to relieve the silent atmosphere with a question. "Anyway, are you going to the festival this weekend?" She asked to the American girl, to which she tilted her head. She wasn't informed at all about any festival or even knew there was one going on.  
"Y-Yeah, I'll try to come along, although I don't exactly have any clothing for it…"

"We can go shopping after school then. After hanging around with the guys so much, it's time for us to have some quality girl time."

Crystal agreed to the invitation to going kimono shopping after class, a subtle smile finally growing on her expression once again.

And that was the first embarrassing moment of her time in Japan, however unknown to her, it wasn't going to be the last… 


	6. Chapter 6

"Y-You sure that it looks okay on me?"

"Of course it does!" Exclaimed Gou with a smile, whilst her thin, fragile fingers ran through Crystal's green hair with attempting to braid it neatly.

After being asked at the last minute, Gou had accepted Crystal's request in helping her get ready for the festival. After all, despite being rather informed on the attire of a kimono, she didn't know where to begin with getting dressed into one. Luckily enough, she had Gou to rely on for help with that type of thing.

Just as she finished with the hair preparation, she rested her hands on Crystal's shoulders and leaned in so that her face was right by hers, to the point that Crystal could audibly hear and feel her light breathing.  
"But I know that Ryugazaki-kun will like it even more…"

The American froze up, her hues moving over to look at Gou face to face, her expression rather flustered from the fact that she could clearly imagine the situation in her mind. It was clearly enough to humour Gou to say the least considering how she laughed whilst pulling herself off the girl's shoulders.  
"I'm kidding! But you do look amazing."

The heat remained on the girls face, however a smile grew on her face from a sense of flattery that began to swell up in her soul. "T-Thanks…"

"Now, let's get going!"

* * *

Soon enough, they arrived at the festival. The sun was already setting and revealing the dark blue sky but despite so, the bright lights and atmosphere did the job perfectly. The boys had been patiently waiting outside of the entrance in waiting for the girls to arrive, chatting away to one another or more precise, all of them teasing the poor butterfly.  
However, despite being late, what Rei especially had seen next would blow all those issues away as if it was a piece of paper torn up and drifting in the wind, out of sight forever.

His hues peered across the crowd of people that was entering, until he seen the two shorter girls moving at a leisurely pace in order to keep any accidents from happening.  
Nagisa began to wave his arms around in the air whilst calling out their names in order to grab their attention, which proved to be a success.

The two dived through the crowd, manoeuvring their way through the large amount of adults who had taken their children out for some family time. Luckily enough, after apologizing multiple times for bumping into the people every now and then, they got out relatively quickly.

"Sorry that we were a little late." Said Gou, however Rei couldn't say anything. He was simply staring at Crystal as if he was under some sort of trance. His mouth was opening and closing like a puppet although no words were escaping with the exception of a few grunts.  
Rin noticed this sudden change in personality, a grin widening on his face as he hit the purple haired butterfly on the back, causing him to stumble forwards as well as return back to the world of reality.

"I-It's okay!" He quickly replied out of instinct, his hand shifted to rub the back of his neck to rub it anxiously. "B-But... You look lovely…" He mumbled shyly to the girl without making even a hint of eye contact, to which brought a smile to Crystal's face, as well as a tint of pink to grow on her cheeks.

" _T-Thank you…"_

"Come on, let's get in before it gets too crowded…" Informed Makoto in a calm fashion to which the others agreed.

* * *

The night had gone on as expected. Everyone was having fun and trying out all the food and prize stalls. In fact, even the American girl had experienced a bunch of new things. That was probably the best thing about it all; It was different, a brand new change in not only in the environment she now lived in, but within herself as well. She was no longer that shy girl who would hide in her room. She now had people whom she called friends.

However, what Crystal didn't expect was the others, especially Rei had a plan that was about to commence.

One by one, all the others left to do their own thing. Haru left to go wherever there was water, with Makoto following behind in order to make sure that he didn't do any indecent in front of the crowd of people. Nagisa was simply dragged away by Rin and Sousuke to stop him from interrupting their plan to get the two together.

However, just as Rei realized what had happened, he quickly took into consideration on what he was planning to do. A sigh escaped softly as he looked up into the night sky. That's right… There was going to be fireworks soon… He would make his proposition then.  
"Rei… Are you okay?" asked Crystal.

Rei blinked a little before returning his line of sights on to Crystal, their eyes meeting in a silent but compassionate gaze. Just then he felt an easy feeling in his heart, but at the same time, he hadn't been that nervous before just by looking into those dazzling, big, round green orbs. Butterflies was growing in his stomach and he simply couldn't control it.  
"Of course…" He said, pretending to keep calm through all the strong emotions that he was experiencing for the first time.  
"The fireworks show is about to start? You want to get going and head to a good place to watch them?"

Crystal's eyes left the males to notice his arm was bent outwards in her direction. She paused for a mere moment in order to acknowledge before nodding as a response to his request, looping her own arm into his. "Sure, let's get going."

In no time at all, the two had finally made it to the highest reachable point where they would get a perfect view of the fireworks. In fact, it seemed that they were a little too early considering how there was no one there. However, knowing Rei's friends, they must have had something to do with it. He couldn't let that distract him though.

He assisted her in sitting down on the bench, before sitting down himself. Other than the butterflies, his legs and arms felt like they were trembling although physically they weren't. They were like jelly and about to give in. He would have to do this quick or otherwise he would never get the perfect chance or courage to. He hesitated at first before turning his attention to the girl beside him.

"Hey… I need to ask you something…"

Her attention had been drifting off by looking at the magnificent night sky which was coated in stars however, just his soft voice grabbed his attention, her interest peaked on what he wanted to ask her.  
"Hm, what is it Rei?" She asked, her head tilting to the side slightly just a kitten trying to understand what the other was saying.

Rei swallowed nervously as he was about to speak, however just as his lips parted and he confessed to his crush, the fireworks display had begun, the loud explosions nulling the sound of his voice so it was impossible to hear him.  
Just as he finished speaking, the noise had dulled down to silence. He took a breath of relief. He got his feelings off his chest, a smile edging on his face in preparation on what her response was going to be.

He feared for the worst: to be rejected. However, everyone who also planned the entire thing thought that those two were perfect for each other. They even had chemistry, in more ways than one.

"So, what do you think?"

Crystal paused for a brief moment in order to reveal her answer. She didn't want to seem rude, but it seemed best that she had to know what he was asking of her. After all, it could have been anything, despite the fact that she never intended for it to be a confession.

"W-Would you mind repeating that again? I couldn't hear you over the fireworks…" She admittedly asked, to which the smile of excitement dropped from the males face. Here we go again…

"Okay. What I was trying to say is…" Just as he began speaking again, the fireworks began once again. It was almost as if they were the source of ruining the romantic moment.

 _Screw it…_

Rei took hold of Crystal's hip and pulled her towards him, enough for him to wrap his arms around her tiny figure. The two stared into each other's eyes for a brief moment until Rei went for it. He leaned down, and placed his lips over hers in a soft yet loving kiss.  
At first, the girl was turning every colour of pink and red, her eyes widened from the immediate shock. However, the shock had ended and she too, also went for it, not even caring about frighteningly loud fireworks still going off.

Just as the noise faded down for another minute, Rei pulled back from the kiss, leaning his forehead against Crystal's whilst staring deep into her eyes. With still that minute left before the next batch of explosions would go off, he managed to fit in three words that would surely change the girl's life forever.

" **Please be mine…** "


	7. Chapter 7

"Please be mine…"

Crystal looked up at Rei with sparkling eyes, the bright colours from the fireworks brightening up both of their faces. Just by staring deep into his purple eyes, she seen love, almost as if he was pleading to agree to his proposition. It would almost be cruel to reject him on the spot especially when he had fallen head over heels for her.

The emotion on her face gradually changed, a smile growing as she nodded, knowing that speaking was pointless with the distant background noise. Besides, works speak louder than words, and it was clear by the joy on her face that her actions spoke out loud enough.  
Rei became speechless from shock. She actually said yes? Sure, he hoped that she would date him, but he didn't think that she would be so enthusiastic about it all. Perhaps he underestimated this mysterious girl. A grin also grew on Rei's face as he used his arms that were still wrapped around her to lift her off her feet in a hug of celebration, with both of his hands acting as leverage on her thighs to keep her lifted. Both of their faces become nuzzled into their lover's shoulders, the warmth of their body calming them both down, as if there was nothing out there that could tear them apart. However, by that time, the fireworks show came to an end, allowing the group of boys who were secretly watching in the bushes to come out in a series of cheering and laughing from glee, with the exception of Haru who simply climbed over, raising and declining his fist without any emotion as usual.

"Way to go Rei!" Called out Nagisa.

Crystal pulled her head back to identify who was cheering away, her eyes widening once she seen their friends revealing themselves. Her surprised yet confused expression moved back to Rei. "W-Wait, did you know about that?"

Rei's mouth dropped open slightly as he lowered the girl back down on the ground, releasing his hold on the female whilst adverting his gaze. After all, she didn't know whether she was alright with it at all. She might have even been mad that he had set her up in order to ask her out.

"W-Well… Yeah… I-I mean, no, of course not!" He quickly stated, although his speech was too fast to follow, especially for someone like Crystal who was still learning the language.  
Despite saying so, he couldn't look at her dead in the eye, which gave her the presumption of what was the correct answer to her question. She couldn't keep her forced frown in place. In fact, the moment that her smile returned, she laughed for a moment. However, with having to speak, she forced herself to keep back her giggling fit.

"You don't have to worry. I'm flattered that you got help to ask me out. No other guy has ever done something like that for me. Thank you…"  
As she gave her gratitude, she lightly punched his shoulder in a friendly fashion before giving him a kiss on the cheek.

Although Rei would be turning every shade of red by that point, especially with his friends teasing him from finding a girl that he liked, he didn't this time. Sure, the rest of the group was frantically teasing him, but he didn't care. He finally found his one true love…

And that was how the two got together…

* * *

Weeks had past ever since the event that happened during the festival, although Rei and Crystal was still on cloud nine with each other. With their feelings both being mutual, the couldn't help but naturally fall head over heels for each other. The two would bicker every now and then, they would eventually laugh it off, as if nothing had happened. Life was so perfect now. Nothing could crush their spirits, or so they thought…

Crystal had just arrived home from a hardworking day at school. Because of the fact that Rei had family business to attend to, she was left to do whatever she wanted for the rest of the day. However, there was only just one thing that was on her mind on what to do: homework.

"Mom, I'm home!" She called out, to which her mother came out of the nearest rooms whilst placing a suitcase that was evidently filled aside.  
This confused the girl, who proceeded in questioning what was happening that they were filling the suitcases.

"What is going on?" She asked in her native tongue, which by that point sounded strange to her as she had been speaking in Japanese for quite some time, rather than English.

"We are leaving. I got a new job opportunity in another country. We will be leaving by the end of this week…"

The sudden news was a surprise for Crystal, who's body completely froze in shock, other than her hands that gripped tightly around the straps of her back, causing her knuckles to turn bright red.  
"W-We… We're leaving…" She muttered to herself as she lowered her head in thought.

"I'll be in my room…" She whispered, slowly but sloppily moving away from the spot she stood and went past her mother, who was watching her every step with worry.

"Is everything okay?" Her mother asked, taking in consideration how she knew she would have to leave her friends behind, and unknown to her, her lover.

Crystal stopped.

"I-I'm totally fine. I have homework to do so I'll be in my room…" She said, a fake smile occurring her current facial features. However, despite trying to put on a brave face and say that she was okay, her heart said different. It throbbed and ached. In fact, she was pretty sure that her heart had dropped immediately after receiving the surprising news.

Soon enough, the evening came and the girl was still doing her school work at her desk. Her chin was resting on her hand, her shoulder resting firmly on the desk. She couldn't concentrate. How could she give the bad news to Rei that she was going to be moving, especially considering how sudden it was as well as the fact that their relationship was only just beginning. However, what worried her most was not giving the news, but from the aftermath that he would be disappointed in her at the least.  
Her lips parted as she sighed deeply, her chin being released from the grip of her hand as she rested her head on her desk. She was exhausted and troubled. Perhaps the answer would come to her eventually in her dreams.

And within a flash, the next day had come along and no solution.

* * *

For once, she wasn't concentrating all that much in class but then again, within a matter of days, she would be leaving the country. As long as she completed the assignments for that week, she would be okay in a certain sense. She stared off in a daze, her hand that was holding the pencil drifting up and down on the paper, her teachers voice gradually turning into nothing but an unrecognizable murmur.

As soon as the sounds of chairs began to scrape, she snapped out of her day dreaming, her glance moving to the purple head male sitting nearby who spoke out to her. "Hey, you want to head out and meet the others?" He asked, with his charming smile.

The girl's heart began to flutter, but then suddenly felt like it dropped into her stomach. How would she be able to give the news?  
Inhaling lightly, she forced on a smile once again before shaking her head. "I'm afraid I'm busy. Perhaps some other time?"

Just those certain words made her tensed up, every faction of her body filled with guilt from having to lie in his face. Quickly before she could break down in nothing but pure emotion, she packed up and left the classroom in a rush, leaving Rei behind. She hated it, but why was she doing it, she couldn't understand it. Perhaps she was trying to get him to hate her so that leaving wouldn't be so emotional for the both of them.

After all, she couldn't determine when she was going to return…


	8. Chapter 8

This had been going on for a matter of days, as Crystal had planned.

Rei seen a change in her from observing her behaviour in class, and not a good one at that. He was worried about her, although every time he tried to speak to her about what was troubling her, she would just leave without saying anything. She was far more quiet than usual and more distant. What was going on?

He confronted his friends about the issue during swimming practice. They didn't know either. She was ignoring all of them? Something was definitely wrong. Despite the fact that she had usually been seen to be quite introverted, but never distant.

"Why is she ignoring us?" Muttered Rei in question once he finished his laps using the butterfly stroke. He rested his back against the wall of the pool, his breathing slightly ragged but not to the point that he was struggling to breath. He pulled his goggles off of his head. He glanced up to the grey, cloudy sky slowly drifting over the school. It looked like it was going to rain soon. Was this truly a sign? Either way, it seemed ironic at best.

Rei climbed out of the pool, allowing the dolphin like male to eagerly dive in to do his laps, something that he would be happy to do for all eternity. After all, if he loved anything, it was the crystal blue water, and the way that his limbs pierced through the water in a series of splashes.  
Whilst the former track team member dried himself off, Makoto walked aside him. "You know, perhaps we can try to get her to come here, so you guys can talk…" He said to Rei, to which he hesitantly nodded. He honestly didn't know what to think.

"That would be nice… But how? Every time I try to talk to her she runs away…" He stated, his glance moving to the gentle orca.  
"Did I do something wrong?"

"No, of course not!" Makoto responded, his eyes softening in pity about how hurt and conflicted his friend was over the matter. "I'm sure that it's all a misunderstanding. Crystal is not the type to play around with someone's emotions." He said, a smile crossing his face, almost as if he was like a ray of sunshine.

"I hope so…"

Meanwhile, whilst the two boys devised a plan in getting Crystal to come to them, she had been packing her own things in order to move once again. It was something that she was used to especially when she was younger, although the memories were rather vague in a sense considering she didn't understand the situation all that much at the time.  
Just as she finished packing away her clothes, she found her phone underneath the somewhat deconstructed room. She paused for a moment before picking it up in her hand and clicked the centre button, to which the screen lit up and showed a picture of both her and Rei, happily smiling together. A smile stretched on her lips from that one specific memory among the rest, despite the fact that the guilt began to weld up within her, her heart dropping out of her chest and into her stomach. Only just one day left… But would she ever get over it?

"Have you almost finished packing your things?" A voice yelled outside of the room, catching her attention which seemingly drifted off upon viewing the picture of the happy couple.  
"Yeah, I have." She responded back.

Within that split second, a vibration rolled up in her arm from the vibrations of her phone. A new message? Who could be messaging her? Until it hit her.  
Swiftly, she checked the message, wondering if it could have been Rei who had sent it. Because of her mixed emotions, she couldn't tell whether she was relieved or still worried that it was Makoto who sent the message. Either way, she read it…

" _Hey can you come to the front of the school in an hour? Could use some help with some English work…"_

That was what the message stated…

If she had to be honest, she was mostly confused about the message, especially since he could have easily asked someone who was in his year for help. Then again, she was previously his tutor when they spoke online.  
Perhaps it was for the best she would at least help him before she left for her flight…

Within the same hour, she had finished packing and left the house. Unlike the rest of the time she was there, everything seemed grey and dull. There was no colour in her life. At least, not anymore.  
In a short space of time, she arrived at her location. There was no one in sight. In fact, the only thing that was keeping her company was the light drizzle of rain that fell from the sky.

"Looks like it's gonna rain…" She said to herself whilst exhaling the cold air deeply. "Perhaps I should find some shelter for now."

Just as she turned around to head inside the school in order to wait for Makoto, her sights had met an unwelcomed guest.  
"Hey…" Rei said as he led himself out into the light spray of rain, causing the girl to freeze up out of shock. It was then she finally took into consideration that it was just a gimmick, a way in tricking her. What was she meant to say? How could she say it without breaking his heart?

Just as she was about to make a dash for it, Rei anticipated her movements and grabbed hold of her arm, instinctively pulling her off her feet and into his hold. His hands gripped tightly against her bare arms, although just enough to keep her in place. She didn't want to hurt her after all.  
"No more running. Now tell me, what's wrong?" He asked in a stern tone, although there was a hint of kindness and worry.

The girl's eyes shimmered and trembled from frustration, her head lowered whilst her teeth became clenched. She could feel the warm tears coming, although she was ashamed to show them whilst looking up at her lover. The pause was long when it came to answering him, giving the sky enough time to cry alongside the girl. The drizzle soon turned into a downpour.

"I got news that my mother and I will be leaving tomorrow. And I don't know if we will be back… The truth is, I didn't know how to tell you… "

Rei blinked once he heard the news, a smile quickly replacing the stern expression and not because he was happy that he was leaving. In fact, deep down, he was devastated, but because he wasn't the reason that she was driven away.

"Is that all?" He softly said before releasing his grip and instead wrapped his arms around her to hug her tightly. "You really did have me worried…"

Crystal's eyes widened. He wasn't mad, but worried. Despite the fact that they were both dating, she didn't expect him to respond the same way he did. Perhaps she did not know him as well as she thought in the first place, or perhaps she underestimated his loyalty. She nuzzled her face into his chest, or more so his jacket.

"I-I'm so sorry…" She managed to squeak out, her throat turned heavy from trying to hold back her sobbing, but despite her efforts, she couldn't help her voice pitch going higher, or the tears that fell down her face. She couldn't hide her emotions from him.

With lightly pulling her back from her hold, he took off his jacket and placed it over her shoulders and bare arms, leaving him to become even more soaked from the rain than her.  
"Here, don't want you to catch a cold, now don't we?" He stated with a friendly smile to cheer her up, wiping away the tears in her eyes. His hands were cold, but gentle to the touch.  
With finally giving her a kiss on her forehead, he finally spoke out once again. "Let's go inside the school. At least until the rain stops…"

With agreeing to his decision, Rei didn't hesitate in picking her up bridal style. At first, Crystal was shocked that he did so, but quickly she began to relax in his arms as he carried her inside, her head resting upon his shoulder.  
Although, the inevitable was about to happen, the heavy feeling of dread and guilt suddenly had dropped. Even if she was to leave the country, the two could always video chat when possible. It wasn't at all a disaster.

On the contrary, it may have helped in strengthening their relationship to allow it to blossom even more.


	9. Chapter 9

Today was the day.  
The day where she would have to leave everything that she had grown to love in Japan, especially Rei. Crystal had to admit that it felt as if a huge weight was lifted off her shoulders as soon as she told him the truth and spending the last hours with him was probably some of the best hours ever, even if it was raining and despite the fact that they would be thousands of miles apart, they would still be able to talk through video chat. Surely not all that much could go wrong as long as they took the time to speak each other, even if it's for a few minutes.

Crystal and her mother had made their way down the train station to go to the airport in Tokyo. It was early in the morning, so the station wasn't too busy; then again, it was a quiet town so the fact that there wasn't much people around wasn't unusual.  
The girl had been sitting around, looking through her phone to kill some time, when a familiar yet faint voice rose out and echoed out of nowhere. It must have been her imagination. She shook off the voice, returning to the world of social media where everything false and ridiculous came out into the open. Sure, it was unnecessary, but it certainly did bring a good laugh every now and then.

The voice that once called out her name came once again, however it was louder than before, to the point where she determined that it wasn't part of her imagination. Her sights immediately moved to where she heard the voice. Nothing…

Wait. There was someone. A small figure quickly getting closer and closer, growing larger and taller until the point where his face was visible. It happened to be Rei.

"Hey! Don't leave without saying good bye…" He said as he finally came to a stop, his chest moving quickly from being out of breath, to which brought a subtle smile to her face from how sweet he was.

"Oh Rei…" She whispered, her sky blue eyes shimmering from a passionate feeling that overwhelmed her.  
Rei wrapped his arms around her waist in a hug, holding her so close that Crystal could smell the sweat that grew underneath his clothing, however, since this was probably their last hug, she didn't mind it at all.

"So, is this a friend of yours?" Her mother asked, typically ruining the romantic moment, although the two love birds didn't mind at all.  
"Mom, this is Rei Ryugazaki." She said softly, which Rei proceeded in wrapping his arm around the shorter being.

"And I'm her lover…" Rei continued, revealing the truth of their relationship status.

This definitely surprised the older woman, but was it for better, or for worse?

"You have a boyfriend, Crystal?"

Crystal nodded in response, remaining close to the male. Her mother smiled widely as a result of receiving the news.  
"Oh, my little baby is growing up so quickly!" She exclaimed, clapping from excitement. "But why didn't you tell me so?" She asked afterwards.

"I… I guess it all just happened so fast and I forgot to mention it. And when you mentioned that we were moving, I didn't exactly know how to tell you the truth…" She admittedly said, removing her line of sight from her only parent, causing her to sigh softly.

"You really should have told me. I now feel bad that I am pulling you two apart…" She said with a frown. "I would allow you to stay here, but where would you live?"

Before Crystal could hesitantly answer, Rei interrupted with excitement in his tone.  
"She can stay with me. There's always room for one more. My parents are usually out of the house on business so I am sure that they won't mind."

The green haired girl quickly looked over to Rei with shock in her expression. She couldn't believe that he was stating so, then again, it wasn't all that surprising since the two were madly in love with each other.

Crystal's mom hesitated a little before she could respond to his offer in taking in her daughter into his home, her glance moving to the two together, who looked up to her with eager, desperate eyes.

"I suppose that it will be okay… But!" She began before marching over to Rei, her face going into his which caused an over drafting shadow to arise on her face. "If you do anything to upset my daughter, I will send my associates to hunt you down…"

Even though the adult woman was speaking English, Rei swallowed nervously, a line of sweat running down the side of his forehead whilst he laughed purely out of fear from how swiftly the woman changed personalities. "I-I can assure you, your daughter is safe with me!" He quickly stated, taking a step back just to regain his personal space.

She nodded. "Good…"

She then turned to her daughter and kneeled down, giving her a tight good bye hug. "Be good okay? Stick into your studies and be sure to call. Especially if lover boy gives you any trouble…" She said with a smirk, to which Crystal shook her head in disbelief.  
"Of course, mom." Crystal responded with a smile.

And with so, the train had come along and halted to a stop. It was finally time to say good-bye, although in not the way that Crystal first expected. It was not to Rei, or her new found friends, but for her own mother, the only person that she had ever known to have raised her.  
Her mother left, leaving the two alone in the peace and quiet to travel back into the town.

And that is the story of how the shy American girl met her true love.

If the story is to continue, the two had remained together through no matter what. With finishing school, they both attended the same university (Although studying different things) as well as continuing to share the same accommodation. Who knows what the future is to unfold, but perhaps once it leads to marriage, a new being would soon arise into the world.


End file.
